TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
2008 Online Senior Assessment (OSA)
The Online Senior Assessment (OSA) is a locally-developed examination of General Education
knowledge and abilities. Four different versions of the OSA were administered online in the spring of
2008. All versions contained a standard set of demographic questions and questions pertaining to
specific General Education competency statements. Each of the four versions included a sub-set of
questions from the re-administration of the Core Competency Essay research begun in 2004. All
students nearing graduation (having 90 or more credit hours) were randomly assigned by major to four
different groups. Then they were sent an e-mail message inviting them to participate in the Online
Senior Assessment. To request a copy of the instrument, email Jennifer.S.Hughes@ttu.edu.
The Online Senior Assessment was administered between February 29 and March 17, 2008.
1,481 students submitted completed OSA instruments, yielding an overall response rate of 20.1% of all
TTU students with 90 or more student credit hours earned. In order to incentivize participation, three
students selected randomly were eligible to win an award of $1,500 for tuition and fees by submitting a
completed assessment.
The competency questions in the Online Senior Assessment were designed by faculty with
content expertise in the related General Education category. Many of the questions had been utilized in
embedded formats for a number of years, and some questions were derived from national assessment
activities related to the specific content areas.
Findings for the Online Senior Assessment are reported in each of the General Education
categories in Section IIB. Extensive and detailed analyses of the results are contained in Appendix F. The
average passing rates for each competency category ranged from 43% to 77% as noted in the chart
below.
0%
Behavioral Sci.
20%
40%
60%
Natural Sciences
Social Sciences
Technology
Visual & Perf. Arts
100%
42.5%
Humanities
Mathematics
80%
69.4%
44.1%
69.2%
60.5%
77.4%
57.9%
Source: Institutional Research and Information Management, Online Senior Assessment, 4/8/2008